You might have a small fortune hiding in your pocket change. Some of the most valuable coins in circulation today aren’t flashy or obvious; they usually have features like subtle errors or rare variations that many ignore. A slightly doubled design or a unique spacing of the letters might not stand out at first glance, but to a coin collector, those small details could be worth thousands.
While many countries embrace low-denomination coins (like the 1 Yen or 1 Euro), the U.S. $1 coin has never gotten much popularity. Americans have always liked dollar bills. Still, the dollar coin continues to be minted and sometimes falls into circulation, and some of them are worth serious money.
The 13 Most Valuable Coins in Circulation
- 2014-D Sacagawea Dollar Muled with Presidential Dollar
- 1794 Flowing Hair Dollar Special Strike
- 1976-S Clad Proof Eisenhower Dollar
- 1870-S Seated Liberty With Motto
- 1796 Draped Bust Dollar Small Date Large Letters
- 1893-S Morgan Silver Dollar Regular Strike
- 1838 Proof Gobrecht Dollar Restrike
- 1876-CC Trade Silver Dollar Business Strike
- 1849 No L Liberty Head Gold Dollar
- 1855 Small Indian Head / Indian Princess Gold Dollar
- 1858 Large Indian Head / Indian Princess Gold Dollar
- 1979-S Susan B. Anthony (SBA) Dollar Regular Strike
- 1925-S Peace Dollar Regular Strike
1. 2014-D Sacagawea Dollar Muled with Presidential Dollar
- Year: 2014
- Series: Sacagawea and Presidential Dollar
- Mint Mark: Denver
- Error: Sacagawea Obverse With Presidential Dollar Reverse
- Grade: AU 58
- Date of Sale: April 24th, 2021
- Price: $84,000
In the early days, Americans used foreign money like colonial coins and Spanish Silver Dollars. These coins were eight-sided and could be cut into bits. Later, the US made its own coins in silver and gold, and smaller ones in copper.
Even in the 1800s, dollar coins felt too heavy for daily use. A dollar was a full day’s wage, but people liked using silver certificates instead. These were the first $1 bills and made trading with paper money popular. That habit stuck—and it’s still going strong over 200 years later!
2. 1794 Flowing Hair Dollar Special Strike
- Year: 1794
- Series: Flowing Hair
- Mint Mark: None (Philadelphia)
- Grade: SP 66
- Date of Sale: 1st January 2013
- Price: $10,016,875
1794 Flowing Hair Dollar coins aren’t used much in daily life, they’re still important enough to keep minting. Today, they’re more popular as collector’s items or for investment. So far, the US Mint has created fifteen $1 coin series across eight mint branches, from 1794 to 2032.
Some years, the mint skipped making $1 coins due to low demand, like from 1803 to 1836, 1904 to 1921, 1929 to 1933, 1936 to 1970, and 1982 to 1985. Since 2011, these coins have only been made for collectors.
The very first $1 coin was the Flowing Hair Dollar, made from 1794 to 1795. It featured Lady Liberty with her hair flowing freely.
3. 1976-S Clad Proof Eisenhower Dollar
- Year: 1976
- Series: Ike Dollar
- Mint Mark: San Francisco
- Grade: PR 66
- Date of Sale: 22nd September 2002
- Price: $41,400
Next came the Draped Bust Dollar. This design added a ribbon to Lady Liberty’s hair and showed part of her dress and neckline. These coins were made until 1803. Interestingly, some coins dated 1804 were actually made in 1834 as special gifts for Asian royalty. In fact, 19,000 Draped Bust Dollars were minted in 1804—but they were all dated 1803 because no new dies were made that year.
Up until 1798, the back of the $1 coin (the tails side) showed a thin eagle inside an olive wreath. After that, the design changed to the Presidential Seal, also known as the heraldic eagle. This version featured a bold eagle holding a shield, a banner in its beak, an olive branch, and arrows, with stars and clouds above.
Most $1 coins were made of silver, except for the gold ones from 1849 to 1889 and later versions that were made with clad metals.
4. 1870-S Seated Liberty With Motto
- Year: 1870
- Series: Seated Liberty
- Mint Mark: San Francisco
- Grade: Brilliant Uncirculated
- Date of Sale: 14th May 2003
- Price: $1,092,500
In 1971, the U.S. Mint introduced clad coins made from a mix of copper and nickel. Most modern $1 coins are made of copper coated with manganese brass, which includes aluminum, manganese, lead, and iron. These coins have a gold-like color, so they’re often called “golden dollars.” But they’re not real gold—just a golden color to set them apart from the old 22k gold coins. We’ll go into more detail on those later.
Now, let’s get back to the early silver dollars. There were many different styles since each die was hand-engraved. These coins are still valuable today. However, many were exported for profit, so the mint stopped producing them in 1804. As mentioned earlier, any $1 coins dated 1804 were either made in 1834 or between 1857 and 1860 for collectors and foreign diplomats.
The U.S. didn’t start making $1 coins for circulation again until 1836. That’s when the Gobrecht Dollar came out, and it remained in use until 1839.
5. 1796 Draped Bust Dollar Small Date Large Letters
- Year: 1796
- Series: Draped Bust
- Mint Mark: None (Philadephia)
- Grade: MS 63+
- Date of Sale: 15th November 2013
- Price: $352,500
Gobrecht Dollars showed Lady Liberty sitting on a rock, holding a shield in one hand and a staff in the other, with a Phrygian cap on the pole. The back had stars and a flying eagle. The Flowing Hair and 1796 Draped Bust Dollars were engraved by Robert Scot, the first Chief Mint Engraver, while the Gobrecht Dollar was by Christian Gobrecht.
In 1840, he changed the design into the Seated Liberty Dollar. He moved the stars to the front and changed the eagle on the back to a perched bird with arrows, a shield, and an olive branch. This design lasted until 1873, with an 1866 update adding the motto “In God We Trust” on a ribbon. From 1849 to 1889, gold $1 coins were added due to the California Gold Rush.
6. 1893-S Morgan Silver Dollar Regular Strike
- Year: 1893
- Series: Morgan Dollar
- Mint Mark: San Francisco
- Grade: MS 65
- Date of Sale: 21st May 2018
- Price: $735,000
Both gold and silver dollar coins were mixed with 10% copper to make them stronger and easier to mint. The gold $1 coins came in three main designs, all created by James B. Longacre. These included the Liberty Head (Type 1) from 1849 to 1854, the Small Indian Head from 1854 to 1856, and the Large Indian Head (Type 2 and 3) from 1856 to 1889. All three had “$1” written inside a wreath on the back.
The Indian Head designs were sometimes called “Indian Princess” and showed Miss Liberty wearing a Native American-style feathered tiara. There were two different versions of this tiara on the front of the coin. The Liberty Head coin was 13mm in size and had an olive wreath on the back. The other two were 15mm and featured wheat and maple wreaths. Each tiara had the word “Liberty” written on the headband. The sizes changed based on the market value of gold at the time.
7. 1838 Proof Gobrecht Dollar Restrike
- Year: 1838
- Series: Gobrecht Dollar
- Mint Mark: None (Philadelphia)
- Grade: PR 65
- Date of Sale: 1st April 2008
- Price: $149,500
Since gold was more expensive than silver, gold $1 coins were much smaller than the larger 1.5” silver coins. Both were minted at the same time. From 1873 to 1885, Silver Trade Dollars were made for Asian merchants. They showed Lady Liberty sitting on cargo and pointing toward the sea. For use at home, the Morgan Dollar was introduced in 1878.
The Silver Morgan Dollar kept the same back design, but with the eagle’s wings pointing upward. Miss Liberty wore a Phrygian cap with maple and wheat sprigs. Trade Dollars were mostly used overseas and only came back when they lost value and were worth less than a dollar in melt price.
8. 1876-CC Trade Silver Dollar Business Strike
- Year: 1876
- Series: Trade Dollar
- Mint Mark: Carson City
- Grade: MS 66
- Date of Sale: 1st April 1997
- Price: $63,800
Trade Dollars were designed by William Barber, the 5th Chief Mint Engraver. The next dollar coin, the Morgan Dollar, was created by George T. Morgan, an assistant engraver from England brought in just for this job. His design was the first U.S. coin to include the sculptor’s signature. Later, Morgan became the 7th Mint Engraver, taking over from William Barber’s son, Charles.
Morgan had a fresh idea—he wanted to show an American woman on the dollar coin. Earlier, the Draped Bust Dollar had been based on Ann Willing Bingham but styled with Greek features. Instead, Morgan asked Anna Willess Williams to model for him. She agreed but asked to stay anonymous. After five sittings, he crafted her portrait with gentle, more realistic features.
9. 1849 No L Liberty Head Gold Dollar
- Year: 1849
- Series: Liberty Head Gold Dollar
- Mint Mark: None (Philadelphia)
- Grade: MS 68
- Date of Sale: 20th June 2007
- Price: $69,000
Since Trade Dollars were mostly used in Asia, they had more silver than the Seated Liberty and Morgan Dollars used in the U.S. The difference was about 42 grains, or half a gram. Morgan Dollars were minted from 1878 to 1904, with two special editions made in 1921 and 2021 to honor treaties that ended World War I.
That same year, the Peace Dollar was introduced in December 1921. Like the Morgan Dollar, it featured the artist’s initials—AF for Antonio de Francisci. He won a design contest and used his wife, Teresa, as the model for Lady Liberty. On the coin, she wore a tiara made of light. The back showed a perched eagle with the word “Peace” written below its feet.
10. 1855 Small Indian Head / Indian Princess Gold Dollar
- Year: 1855
- Series: Small Indian Head / Indian Princess Gold Dollar
- Mint Mark: None (Philadelphia)
- Grade: MS 67+
- Date of Sale: 28th August 2022
- Price: $180,000
The Peace Dollar was minted from 1921 to 1928, then paused during the Great Depression, and returned briefly in 1934 and 1935. After that, interest in $1 coins dropped, and production stopped until 1971. That year, the Ike Dollar was launched to honor Dwight D. Eisenhower, the 34th U.S. President. It was the first dollar coin made with a clad composition—some were 40% silver, others were copper clad with nickel.
This change came because silver prices soared in the 1960s, leading to a coin shortage. As a result, Proof Ike Dollars were made with 40% silver and 60% copper, while the regular circulating coins had 8.33% nickel and 91.67% copper. The Ike Dollar was designed by Frank Gasparro, the 10th Chief Mint Engraver. The front of the coin featured Eisenhower’s portrait, and the back showed a bald eagle landing on the moon.
11. 1858 Large Indian Head / Indian Princess Gold Dollar
- Year: 1858
- Series: Large Indian Head / Indian Princess Gold Dollar
- Mint Mark: None (Philadelphia)
- Grade: MS 68
- Date of Sale: 3rd January 2012
- Price: $74,750
This reverse design mimicked the mission badge of the Apollo Moon Landing of 1969, the same year Eisenhower died. Bureaucracy and politics stalled the coin’s approval until 1971, when it went into production. The silver version was minted in proof and uncirculated sets, marketed as Brown Ikes or Blue Ikes based on packaging.
The public said $1 coins were too heavy to carry, so in 1979, the mint tried Susan B. Anthony Dollars. About 1″ in size, they honored a suffragist and had a round shape with an eleven-sided inner rim. Like the Ike, it was a clad coin with a copper core and a 75% copper, 25% nickel coating.
12. 1979-S Susan B. Anthony (SBA) Dollar Regular Strike
- Year: 1979
- Series: Susan B. Anthony Dollar (SBA)
- Mint Mark: San Francisco
- Grade: NGC Genuine
- Date of Sale: 17th September 2021
- Price: $15,000
Unfortunately, its small size made many mistake it for a quarter, leaving people feeling duped, so it only lasted until 1981, with a memorial run in 1999. It was the first time an American woman appeared on a coin—a feat not repeated until the Sacagawea $1 in 2000 and the American Women Quarters starting in 2022.
In 1986, another $1 coin appeared, but it wasn’t for circulation. It was a bullion coin called the American Silver Eagle, with a $1 face value. It shows a Walking Liberty on the obverse and a bald eagle with an olive branch on the reverse. Containing 1 Troy Ounce of Silver, it’s minted yearly for investors, and its obverse comes from the Weinman Half Dollar.
13. 1925-S Peace Dollar Regular Strike
- Year: 1925
- Series: Peace Dollar
- Mint Mark: San Francisco
- Grade: MS 65+
- Date of Sale: 28th August 2022
- Price: $132,000
The year 2000 saw the return of circulating $1 coins, this time honoring Native American heroine Sacagawea. It was golden, not gold, with a manganese brass coating. The original reverse had a flying eagle, but from 2009 to 2012, it featured icons of Native American culture.
Another $1 coin matching the Sacagawea Dollar was the Presidential Dollar Series, launched in 2007. It honors every U.S. President, but only if they’ve been dead for at least two years. Both coins have edge inscriptions, a nod to original gold dollars that used edge writing to stop coin shaving.
Bottom Line:
While most people think of collectible coins as ancient relics or museum pieces, many rare and valuable coins can still be found in circulation or purchased from dealers and auctions. Whether it’s a historic 1794 Flowing Hair Dollar or a modern Sacagawea error coin, these pieces tell fascinating stories and represent a slice of American history, not to mention they’re worth serious money.
So the next time you get change from a store, take a closer look. That ordinary-looking dollar coin in your hand might just be worth thousands!